Congress hardens its stance on GST, submits dissent note

Prepares for multi-pronged attack on government

The Congress has raised the ante in its opposition to the constitutional amendment unveiling the Goods and Service Tax (GST) regime and submitted its dissent note to the Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha, which finalised its report on Monday. Highlighting its objections, the Congress has stated that it was all for a GST tax, which is "simple and comprehensive" but it is "impossible" for them to extend support to the 2015 Bill, which is replete with "compromises, exclusions and exceptions".

With the BJP-led government keen on getting this landmark tax reform through in this monsoon session, the support of the non-Congress parties will be crucial for a government, which is short on numbers in the Rajya Sabha. The Congress is determined to obstruct parliamentary proceedings, and so the first week of the session is unlikely to see any business being transacted and the challenge for the government will be to get its legislative agenda cleared in the rest of the session.

While the Congress has lost no time in submitting its dissent to the GST, the Left parties' opposition to the Bill is weakening; it has not joined cause with the Congress and supports the states' right to one per cent additional tax above the GST. The Left, in its dissent note, is likely to raise the issue of Centre enjoying total veto power in the present decision-making setup of the GST council, and that should be corrected. However, the Left parties are unwilling to reveal their cards as yet on what their stance will be on the Bill.

The Congress has reiterated its demand for a GST rate with a ceiling of 18 per cent, so that formidably high retail rates are not a burden on the poor consumers. Terming the one per cent additional tax as "market distorting", the Congress has demanded its removal. It has also stuck to its demand for "no exclusions" and that alcohol and electricity be included under the GST regime. It has again reiterated its demand for a dispute settlement authority.